The Philippine Rugby Football Union is proud to announce the players who have been selected for the HSBC Asian 5 Nations match against the United Arab Emirates.

Head coach: Jarred Hodges
Manager: Phil Gittus
Physiotherapist: Luke Heath
Asst Physiotherapist: Rico Barin

The match will be played at 7:00pm on Saturday, May 18 at Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. It will be telecast live on Solar Sports Channel. The winner of the match will remain in the top 5 of the Asian 5 Nations, while the loser will be relegated to Division 1 in 2014.

Ticket information:
Bleachers: FREE OF CHARGE
Grand Stand: P 200 / P500  
available at: http://www.ticketworld.com.ph

Live scoring on: www.twitter.com/PhilippineRugby

The Asian 5 Nations represents the highest tier of international rugby in Asia and is Asia's qualifying tournament for the Rugby World Cup 2015.

For more information on the Asian 5 Nations, go to:
http://www.asian5nations.com

Bruised but not broken. The embattled National Men’s Rugby Team, known as the Philippine Volcanoes will face the United Arab Emirates on Saturday, May 18 in the closing match of the HSBC Asian 5 Nations competition. Both teams are winless in the series, making Saturday the battle against relegation, with the winner remaining in Asia’s top 5, and the loser relegated to Division 1.

It has been a challenging debut for the Philippines in the Elite Division after practically cruising through the lower divisions since the Volcanoes began competing in the Asian 5 Nations series. Before 2013, the Volcanoes had lost only once (in 2011 to South Korea), a record bested only by perennial A5N champions and still unbeaten Japan.

Despite the losses, the Volcanoes have shown flashes of brilliance in each match, and have vowed to put the pieces together to get the win against fourth-ranked United Arab Emirates. The past week has seen the arrival of veteran players Phil Abraham, Michael de Guzman and Nick Perry to shore up an injury-plagued forward pack. The lessons learned from their first three matches and extended training time together, a challenge the Volcanoes face with players based in different parts of the world, should also serve the Volcanoes in good stead.

Philippines Coach, Jarred Hodges, maintains that the team has stayed positive and is in good spirits in the lead up to Saturday’s match. “It won’t be easy, as UAE have been in the top 5 for a number of years, but we are quietly confident”.  Hodges added “We are playing in Manila, and the hometown support never fails to lift the boys’ performance.”

The team that finishes fifth after the end of the six-week long competition will be demoted to Division 1, while the top 4 teams’ remain in the Elite Division and continue their quest to qualify for the Rugby World Cup 2015.

The winner of the Elite Division in 2014 receives outright qualification to the Rugby World Cup 2015, while the Elite Division’s 2nd placer will face the 2nd placers from Africa, Europe and the Americas in a knock-out competition for the 20th & final Rugby World Cup slot.

Where to watch:

Philippines vs. United Arab Emirates
7pm | Saturday, May 18
Rizal Memorial Stadium, Adriatico Ave.
Malate, Manila

Bleachers: FREE OF CHARGE
Grand Stand: P 200 / P500  
available at: http://www.ticketworld.com.ph

The game will be telecast live on Solar Sports channel.

Live scoring on www.twitter.com/PhilippineRugby

As part of the build-up for the past Volcanoes vs Hong Kong game, the Asian Rugby Football Union (ARFU) sent two coaches, Deano Herewini and Ismail Kadir to the Philippines. The two coaches arrived to run an HSBC Asian Grassroots Rugby program as a joint effort by the ARFU and the PRFU.

HSBC Asian Grassroots Tour – Day 1

The program began on a very hot Wednesday morning, May 1st, at the QC Circle. Despite the scorching sun, coaches Deano Herewini and Ismail Kadir tackled training 40 boys and girls from House of Refuge. This orphanage is one of the many orphanages that PRFU supports. Boys and girls ranging from ages four to 16 participated in the program. It was the task of the assisting coaches Acee San Juan, Kaye Llanie Honoras, and Juan Engelbrecht to sort the participants into groups to receive their free T-shirts before training.

Training kicked off with some handling skill drills and progressed with added running lines and rucking techniques. Even though the coaches were faced with a big language barrier, the kids understood the language of rugby and grasped the fine concepts fairly quickly. The kids enjoyed each drill oblivious to the heat of the summer sun. At the end of the day, the coaches completed training with a game of modified touch involving all the participants in an exciting, fun game. Afterwards, everyone finished the day with some merienda and pictures with the coaches, who they so very much appreciated for coaching them.

HSBC Asian Grassroots Tour – Day 2

The following day, the HSBC Asian Grassroots Rugby program kicked off bright and early at the Bulacan Sports Complex. Forty kids from Bulacan Rugby Club, with an age range of five to 18 years old, gathered at the complex, eager to learn new rugby skills under the guidance of coaches Izzy and Deano. The kids were divided into 2 age groups: Under 10s with coach Izzy and those aged 11 and above with Coach Deano. The session began with a warm up game involving quick running, alertness, communication, and training to move as a team.

At training, the younger group was taught ball familiarization, running with the ball, evasion, as well as the basics of catch and pass. Meanwhile, the older children began with basic catch and pass skills, and quickly progressed to more advanced rugby moves like switches, wraps, scrum half passes, and reloads.  The session, which lasted for an hour and a half, ended with a modified rugby game for both groups.  Despite the hot weather condition, all the kids had fun and were eager to learn more of the sport they had just picked up a few months ago.

Later in the day, the Grassroots group travelled up north to head for City of Angeles in Pampanga with Clark Freeport Zone (Clark Jets Rugby Club) as the point of destination. The Clark session was scheduled at 4 pm at the Grand Parade grounds of the Freeport Zone.  As they arrived, a total of 240 enthusiastic kids, with an age range of 4 to 20 years old, were waiting patiently for the coaches. Due to the larger number of participants, the ARFU coaches were assisted by local and regional coaches of PRFU.

Local coaches Juan, Acee, Aye, Lito, and Joemari helped out Izzy and Deano in coaching the different age groups. The kids were divided into 7 groups: girls U10s, girls 11 up, boys 8-10, boys 11-13, boys 14-16, boys 17-18, and boys 19 up. All the participants were taught the basic skills needed in rugby like passing, catching, and running with the ball. At the end of the session, a modified game of rugby was played by all the groups. What made the session even more special was the participation of the kids from a correctional institute based in the province, as well as a large group of Aeta kids who had come to join the session.  The day was a huge success because of the large turnout of participants, as well as the great sessions. It can truly be said that the future of rugby in our country is bright. 

HSBC Asian Grassroots Tour – Day 3

On Friday, May 3, the third leg of the tour took the group to Ayala Alabang Village Cuenca Field, where several Tuloy sa Don Bosco Foundation boys and Eagles Juniors boys were waiting for the coaching team. Everyone was once again ready and excited to start one of coach Deano’s fun coaching sessions when the heavens suddenly decided to open up on and shower the city with wind, rain and lightning. With quick thinking, the session was moved into the roof covered basketball court and the session continued as the elements were drowning everyone’s ears.

Nevertheless, nothing stopped the kids, the PRFU staff, and coach Deano from accomplishing what was nothing less than an inspiring coaching session which everyone enjoyed. Every person was keen to learn from the international coach and easily absorbed the new patterns being taught to them. The boys were very agile and receptive and before we knew it, the session and thunderstorm was over. Everyone had a great time and had huge smiles on their face as they thanked us before leaving the drenched Cuenca field.

HSBC Asian Grassroots Tour – Day 4

Finally on May 4th, the big day, just hours before the main game kick off, HSBC Asian Grassroots Rugby together with the PRFU ran a grassroots rugby clinic at Rizal Memorial Stadium with an attendance of 500 kids from all over the Philippines. Youth from different clubs, schools and children’s homes, all came together for this joyous moment. The HSBC Asian Grassroots Rugby clinic played host to more than 300 orphaned kids from different foundations.

Coach Deano and Ismial from ARFU and 8 more coaches from the PRFU took on this daunting task of coaching 500 kids in one venue. Although one might think this was impossible, the impossible was accomplished. With 10 stations and 50 kids at each station, all the boys and girls took part in a tough coaching session from all the coaches. After the basics of touch skills were practiced well, the teams came together for some touch rugby competition. With the coaches refereeing the games and the kids testing their skills to the limits, both coach and youth alike ended the day exhausted but happy.  After the big session, everyone transferred to the swimming pool for a cool down. The pool session was the icing on the cake and was fully enjoyed by the kids, much to the life guard’s horror. After a great cool down, everybody was greeted with a meal from McDonald's. With tummies full and happy faces, each and every one was ready to hit the stands and cheer on their team, the Volcanoes.

The PRFU would like to thank our sponsors HSBC and Gerry’s Grill for making this event possible. It is thanks to our sponsors that we were able to get 500 kids to Rizal Memorial Stadium and feed them after a tough day at the office. We thank you HSBC and Gerry’s Grill.

All videos courtesy of HSBC Asian Grassroots Rugby

The Philippine Rugby Football Union is proud to announce the players who have been selected for the HSBC Asian 5 Nations match against South Korea.

Head coach: Stuart Woodhouse
Asst coach: Phil Gittus
Physiotherapist: Luke Heath

The match will be be played on Saturday, 11 May at the Ansan Wa Stadium, Ansan, South Korea. 

The Asian 5 Nations is an annual international Rugby Union competition held between the top five Asian national rugby sides. The Philippines will face Japan, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates and South Korea in a round-robin competition over five consecutive weekends throughout April and May 2013.

20 April 2013
Japan v Philippines: Fukuoka, Japan
Hong Kong v United Arab Emirates: Hong Kong 

26 April 2013
United Arab Emirates v South Korea: Al Ain, Abu Dhabi

27 April 2013
Hong Kong v Japan: Hong Kong

4 May 2013
Japan v South Korea: Tokyo, Japan
Philippines v Hong Kong: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila

10 May 2013
United Arab Emirates v Japan: Dubai

11 May 2013
South Korea v Philippines: Ansan, South Korea

18 May 2013
South Korea v Hong Kong , Ansan, South Korea
Philippines v United Arab Emirates: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila 

The Asian 5 Nations represents the highest tier of international rugby in Asia and is Asia's qualifying tournament for the Rugby World Cup 2015.

For more information on the Asian 5 Nations, go to:
http://www.asian5nations.com

For tickets to the games at Rizal Memorial Stadium, go to:
http://www.prfu.com/a5n-2013-tickets.html

FILA 15s League LOG POINTS

The second round of the Fila 15s League is scheduled this Saturday, 11th of May, at Nomad Sports Club.

The Development Award is given to a group or individual that has achieved outstanding success in the development of Rugby, at any level of the game or in the aspects of playing, coaching,administration, training, capital development or Rugby-related volunteer or charity initiatives. 

Apart from Philippine Rugby’s successes on the playing field, the ARFU recognized the PRFU’s activities in developing the sport of Rugby at the grassroots level through free training sessions, local 15s, 7s and 10s club leagues and its booming Juniors program which counts students from the International schools as well as several charitable foundations as its participants.

One half to remember, and one to forget.  That was what the Philippine Volcanoes gave to the hometown crowd at Rizal Memorial Stadium on Sunday against Hong Kong as they came roaring out of the gates to shake the heavily-favored visitors for a half and then some.  

Rookie fly-half Alex Aronson gave the Volcanoes a quick start by kicking a penalty to give the underdog Volcanoes an early 3-0 lead. The team’s confidence soared as they stymied Hong Kong in the midfield and on the fringes, buoyed by a fervent home crowd.  


The early returns also carried signs of what would ultimately be the team’s undoing, as the Philippine scrum struggled to deal with Hong Kong up front. Hong Kong’s first try was awarded as a penalty try after a collapsed scrum on the 5-meter line.  

Nothing summed up the team’s first-half confidence though than the passage of play directly off the kick-off following Hong Kong taking their first lead. A long kick-off by Aronson to just in front of the visiting 22 was recovered by the Volcanoes and lock forward David Feeney, captain of the local Manila Nomads, first made spectators         

A famous upset seemed to be in the works as Hong Kong produced some sloppy ball inside the Volcanoes’ 22-meter that was picked up by the outside backs of the Philippines and run back for a sparkling coast-to-coast try and an apparent 17-7 lead going into the half.   Fortune didn't favor the Philippines as the referee produced a shaky offside call to nullify the try, and then almost immediately awarded another penalty try for another collapsed scrum to Hong Kong.  Despite not having kicked a penalty nor crossed the try line, and rarely crossing the gain line in the first-half, the visitors entered the half with a 14-10 lead and breathing room to regain their footing. 

For 10 more minutes the Volcanoes looked undaunted by the bad luck and questionable calls. while another Aronson penalty brought the home-side to within 1 point before Hong Kong’s overwhelming advantage in the scrum and a regrouped Hong Kong backline began to cut apart the Volcanoes defense.  An already thin Filipino frontline, struggling with the loss of loose forward Jake Ward to broken ribs, took another hit as lock Steve Howorth continued to struggle with a knock suffered in pre-season and had to leave the game.  Blindside Flanker Terry Carroll was forced into the lock position while Daniel Rodriguez was brought on at blindside.  

When a nice Hong Kong backline move in the midfield sprung Jonny Rees for his first try of two up the middle, the first-half 14-point swing began to look like a backbreaker.  The try signalled the beginning of the end as Hong Kong began to pour in try after try as defensive breakdowns and set-piece difficulties for the Volcanoes piled up.  Captain Michael Letts provided a brief moment of solace for the home crowd with a late try and Aronson kicked the conversion to finish a perfect day of kicking, going four from four, but by then, Hong Kong had already run away with the game.

The Volcanoes can take a large measure of comfort from their first-half performance against one of the top Asian teams with a much improved showing over their opener.  The team will have to combine their sparkling attacking potential with a consistent eighty minutes of defense and produce some solution to their continuing struggles against larger teams in the scrum.  

The upcoming weeks will see the arrival of veteran forwards Josh Sutcliffe, Phil Abraham, and Michael de Guzman to shore up an injury-depleted forward pack as the team goes into their last two critical matches in a fight for top-division survival in Korea on May 11th, and what may be a relegation battle against visiting UAE at Rizal stadium on May 18th.   

report: Jon Morales
photos: Jinggo Montenejo

The Philippine Volcanoes national Rugby team prepare for their first-ever home match as contenders in the Asian 5 Nations Top 5 Division as they host Hong Kong this Saturday, May 4 at Rizal Memorial Stadium. 

The Volcanoes enter the match as significant underdogs in their debut season in the Elite Division of Asian Rugby against a veteran Hong Kong team that has never finished lower than third in the competition, and regularly comes in second-place to perennial league leaders, Japan.  The team is looking for an improved result after a very difficult opening loss away against Japan.  The season-opener served as a baptism of fire after the team mostly sailed through its divisional promotional campaign with barely a bump, suffering only one loss in the previous five years.

The Volcanoes’ task will be made even harder as starting 8-man/flanker Jake Pingal Ward is likely out for the rest of the tournament with broken ribs suffered in the match against Japan, and Head Coach Jarred Hodges forced to leave Thursday night due to a critical family emergency.  The Volcanoes enter the match with assistant coach Stu Woodhouse taking over the head coaching duties and team manager Phil Gittus assisting with the forwards.  Reached for comment prior to the match, Gittus noted the team “has a very realistic, but very positive attitude going into Saturday’s match. [The team] has had three weeks together now and look forward to showcasing some of [their] attacking prowess as well as defensive resolve.”   

The team can look to some encouraging signs before the first match.  Before facing defending champions Japan, the Volcanoes had only one week to prepare due to majority of the players being based in Australia, Japan, Europe, and the United States.  The extra time together in practice will benefit the team immensely in terms of structure, organization, and chemistry.  

They should also be encouraged by the play of starting scrum-half James Carandang Price who excelled in every facet of the game against Japan, despite an overwhelming advantage in quality by the fully-professional Japanese side.   Facing a Japanese forward pack with a massive size advantage, the high-flying Volcanoes backs, long considered the team’s most dangerous attacking weapon, were starved of ball possession in their opening match and will look to string together more possession and phases of play against a Hong Kong side that also lost heavily to Japan at home last week, while the forwards should be able to showcase a more structured and organized defensive effort.

While an upset win against Hong Kong this weekend would be a pleasant shock, the team will be looking more for further experience in top-division Asian Rugby and signs of progress before entering the critical matches against South Korea on May 11 and UAE on May 18 as they search for the all-important win to avoid relegation and ensure survival in the top division.


About the HSBC Asian 5 Nations

The HSBC Asian 5 Nations is a six-week long competition among the top 5 teams in Asia and is the qualifying competition for the Rugby World Cup 2015. Having been promoted from Division 1 in 2012, the Philippines are ranked fifth while Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates ranked first, second, third & fourth, respectively.

The team that finishes fifth after the end of the six-week long competition will be demoted to Division 1, while the top 4 teams’ remain in the Elite Division and continue their quest to qualify for the Rugby World Cup 2015.

The winner of the Elite Division in 2014 receives outright qualification to the Rugby World Cup 2015, while the Elite Division’s 2nd placer will face the 2nd placers from Africa, Europe and the Americas in a knock-out competition for the 20th & final Rugby World Cup slot.

4 May 2013:    
Japan v South Korea: Tokyo, Japan
Philippines v Hong Kong: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila

10 May 2013: 
United Arab Emirates v Japan: Dubai

11 May 2013: 
South Korea v Philippines: Ansan, South Korea

18 May 2013:
South Korea v Hong Kong , Ansan, South Korea
Philippines v United Arab Emirates: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila  


Where to watch

Tickets to the Philippine games on May 4 & 18 are available at: http://www.ticketworld.com.ph

The Philippine games on May 4 & 18 will be telecast live on Solar Sports and FOX Sports channels.

Games are also available to view online:
http://www.ustream.tv/A5NRugby

View complete telecast schedule: 
http://www.asian5nations.com/node/305

The Philippine Rugby Football Union is proud to announce the players who have been selected for the HSBC Asian 5 Nations match against Hong Kong.

Head coach: Stuart Woodhouse
Asst coach: Phil Gittus
Physiotherapist: Luke Heath

The match will be be played on Saturday, 4 May at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila at 7:00pm. It will be telecast on Solar Sports and ESPN Star Sports Channels.

The Asian 5 Nations is an annual international Rugby Union competition held between the top five Asian national rugby sides. The Philippines will face Japan, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates and South Korea in a round-robin competition over five consecutive weekends throughout April and May 2013.

20 April 2013
Japan v Philippines: Fukuoka, Japan
Hong Kong v United Arab Emirates: Hong Kong 

26 April 2013
United Arab Emirates v South Korea: Al Ain, Abu Dhabi

27 April 2013
Hong Kong v Japan: Hong Kong

4 May 2013
Japan v South Korea: Tokyo, Japan
Philippines v Hong Kong: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila

10 May 2013
United Arab Emirates v Japan: Dubai

11 May 2013
South Korea v Philippines: Ansan, South Korea

18 May 2013
South Korea v Hong Kong , Ansan, South Korea
Philippines v United Arab Emirates: Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila 

The Asian 5 Nations represents the highest tier of international rugby in Asia and is Asia's qualifying tournament for the Rugby World Cup 2015.

For more information on the Asian 5 Nations, go to:
http://www.asian5nations.com

For tickets to the games at Rizal Memorial Stadium, go to:
http://www.prfu.com/a5n-2013-tickets.html

The U16s division featured the Mavericks Rugby Club, Clark Jets Rugby Club, and the Childhope Foundation. The games were evenly matched, with the teams winning by just 1 or 2 points. The CJRS victory over the Mavericks secured them first position in this age group.

The U14s division featured five teams.  All the matches were close, with some games resulting in draws. It was the much improved Bulacan Team 2 who had the most number of wins in this division. As a result Bulacan Team 2 came in first place with the Hapons and Clark Rugby Jets placing second and third, respectively. 

This tournament edition applied the new “set and rip” rule of Rugby. Traditionally, players were to put the ball down and step over it upon being touched. Under the new rule, players now have to turn their back on their opposition and present the ball to their teammates, who in turn will rip the ball from the touched player. This variation is more consistent with the rules of full contact rugby. All teams were instantly able to adjust to the new rule and were able to play fun, high-level games throughout the day.

The teams who participated were:


U10s

SOS Children’s Village Rugby Team

Mavericks Rugby Club

Bulacan Rugby Club


U12s

Clark Jets Rugby

Bulacan Rugby Club

SOS Children’s Village Rugby Team

U14s

Hapons Rugby Club

Bulacan Rugby Club 1

Bulacan Rugby Club 2

Mavericks Rugby Club

Clark Jets Rugby

U16s

Mavericks Rugby Club

Clark Jets Rugby

Childhope Foundation